Well, looks like it’s time to dust off this corpse of a series that I haven’t touched upon in a long time. Hidden Gems has been on the back burner for quite some time until I could play Mehr underappreciated games. And now that I am back into it, I think now is the time to start talking about it again. And let’s talk about Persona (Wait, that’s not underrated). It’s no surprise that I Liebe Persona. Like, a lot. And when I was told that there were a ton of other games like it in the world of Shin Megami Tensei, well, I just had to get onboard that. I started with the third game, Nocturne, and was prepared for a fun time… And what that resulted in was a lot of dying, a lot of getting lost, and a lot of feeling terrible because of how horrible the world is. And boy, do I Liebe it a lot.
~Story~
First off, Shin Megami Tensei is NOT like Persona. It’s in the same universe, but Persona is a lot Mehr focused on bonds, fun times with friends, and only having undertones of awful things. Whereas Shin Megami Tensei is all about the apocalypse, nihilism, and dead friends. But let’s explain. The game follows Protag-Kun, who doesn’t really have an official name and goes Von the name Demi-Fiend, which I will refer to him as. Demi-Fiend and his friends, Chiaki and Isamu, go to a hospital to visit their teacher, Ms. Yuko Takao. But when they arrive, they find that the hospital is a front for a mysterious cult lead Von their leader, Hikawa, who wants to bring The Conception to earth, which is the end of the world. And within the first hour, he does just that. All human life is wiped out except for the five characters (And a reporter named Hijiri is there too), and the world is overrun with demons, and the Demi-Fiend himself is turned into a demon while the other humans on earth slowly start to gain a Reason, a path that pushes them towards a belief in hopes of changing the world into their own image. So, as the Demi-Fiend, your job is to decide what to shape the world into. To make everyone into a harmonious society with no conflict, but no emotions, to build a world where the strong survive and are on top, a world where everyone is at the center of their own universe, oder deny all reasons to restart the world again oder to keep the world as is and run an army of demons to kill god… Yes, really. And as Du can except, there is a lot of horrible undertones and a lot of feelings of hopelessness and pointlessness. So fun times ahead.
~Gameplay~
So Schreiben wise, Nocturne is nothing like Persona already. Persona never had the world end (At least not in their kanone endings), and was always a Mehr happy game (Except for the first two, and debatably 3). But boy, does this game waste no time in telling Du that everyone is dead and Mehr people are gonna die in this horrible world. But how is the gameplay in this game? Well unlike in Persona, Du don’t have a Tag to Tag system where Du explore the world on a daily basis. Instead, there’s the Phases of Kagutsuchi, which is like the moon, only it’s… not. Depending on what phase the Kagutsuchi is at, Du will face different enemies, have different battles, and can fuse different demons. Oh, also, the demons in this game are not Personas. They are individual demons with their own personalities and stats. This game plays less like Persona in some aspects and Mehr like Pokemon. It’s really just Pokemon with Mehr nihilism. Du collect demons to Mitmachen your group throughout the game, and gain Mehr stronger ones as Du go on. Du start off getting crappy ghosts and imp demons, until eventually, Du can unlock Beelzebub, Metatron, and Dante from the Devil May Cry franchise (Had to get that classic outta the way). To recruit them, Du have to talk to them, and while I like the idea, I honestly found this to be rather iffy. I could give a demon a ton of cash and a rare item, and they still run off. But at least they never ask for anything too insane. Du can get a ton of money in this game from just grinding. I feel as though grinding is less necessary than in Persona, cause it doesn’t really matter how high your level is, though it can be of some help. What matters most is that Du use your skills properly on the bosses depending on who Du go up against. As for money, I mostly used it to buy MP items, medicines, used the fountains to get healed up perfectly, and the occasional Magatama. Oh, and while we’re on that subject…
Another system unique to Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne is the ability to use Magatama. These things are disgusting parasites that Du need to put into your body, but depending on which one Du use, Du will gain a bonus to your character. It can make Du weak to certain attacks, but also nullify others. They also increase Zufällig stats, which can range from your strength, your magic, your health, your agility, oder your luck. Another use of Magatama is that Du can get a new skill when Du level up. Each Magatama has a good amount of skills for Du to learn. Too much, in fact. I always worry that I’m throwing out a real useful skill in this game and wish that I kept it, like say Fog Breath oder War Cry. Despite that, Du can get a demon that has that and as long as they are skilled enough and can still learn good moves, Du are able to do just fine without your protagonist having them. But what doesn’t help is that Du always need to worry about death and expel. I despise these moves with a passion. Unless Du have some way of nullifying them, it only takes the enemy to get a lucky shot on Du to die instantly. And this is something I always hated, in any RPG, when the protagonist dies, it doesn’t matter how many party members are left standing, Du are done, and Du gotta go all the way back to your last save. I cannot stand that and I know a lot of hardcore RPG Fans don’t mind, but I hated it in Persona, and I hate it here in Shin Megami Tensei. It’s worse cause it really matters on how lucky the enemy is. Thankfully, Du can get spells oder full nulls all together, but even then, it’s usually just for one oder the other, and never both. But that’s what this game is like. It is very unforgiving at times, but there are moments where that matters a lot. Take, for example, the dreaded Matador boss fight.
Whenever I hear about some of the hardest, cheapest bosses in video games, people who played Nocturne always warn others of the Matador. The Matador is one of the Fiends Du fight in the game, enemies who are always wandering about, ready for a fight. The others are optional, but if Du want to continue through the game, Du have to beat the Matador. And I thought that I was a pretty good level to face him. I was not. I died almost instantly. So I went and grinded for a bit until I was ten levels above what I was before. I went back. Still died. And then I realized why he was so tough. I’m not using my skills. I’m just using attacks and the occasional healing. If I want to beat him, I gotta use stat boosts on my party and debuffs on the enemy if I stand a chance. Sure enough, with this in mind and a little patience, I barely defeated him and was able to continue through the game. The Matador is a hard boss, yes, but also an important boss. The Matador teaches Du that if Du treat this like another other RPG, Du stand no chance. The world of Nocturne is cruel and unforgiving, and the Matador is no different. So if Du come into this fight unprepared, Du can be prepared to see the game over screen a lot. And while many Mehr bosses were difficult later on, and the Trumpeter was just an all around bastard, it still teaches Du the importance of using your skills. And I can appreciate the Matador for that. That being said, I hope to never fight him again any time soon.
But where this game really shines is in its story. Shin Megami Tensei has always had a very dark undertone to their stories. The Persona games, for examples, have a lot of dark themes such as death, nihilism, and the awful things people in power do to anyone. And other Shin Megami games like Digital Devil Saga which has straight up cannibalism. And Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne is no exception to that. With the world being filled with demons and all humans having died oder become souls of their former selves, those that have survived start to change drastically. Du can see what they wish to do in this new world just Von looking at their behaviors in the world before the universe changes. Well, Hikawa is as subtle as Dante trickshotting Du from a distance, but the others like Chiaki oder Isamu oder Takao are far more. Du can guess what they will do from there. And Du have the option to support either one of these routes. Be it a world of Law, Chaos, oder Neutral. oder Du can just deny all of that and make your own path. I hear that in old Shin Megami Tensei games that it was just Law, Chaos oder Neutral with the Neutral being the one that has Mehr gameplay and stuff, and I think that the way Nocturne approached it was the best possible way. How no side is good, and how whichever Du choose has a true effect on the story, with only one route having a special boss for Du to fight. One that I am way too scared to fight because I don’t feel like having to fight another boss with two phases just to get to it. Won’t say what it is, but I will say if Du want the best ending in the entire game, in my opinion, Du may consider doing a LOT of grinding and sidequests. Also, one weird complaint, if anyone played this game on PS2, does the Musik sound all compressed? I hear that it’s because they wanted faster Wird geladen times than Square Enix games, but man, it’s weird. It’s a shame, cause I really Liebe the soundtrack Von classic Atlus composer Shoji Meguro.
~Legacy~
Nocturne was the one that everyone recommends when they ask Persona casuals what Shin Megami Tensei game to try. And while Nocturne isn’t exactly seen at the peak of gaming knowledge, it does have a massive following. I’d assume, Shin Megami Tensei is only behind Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy when it comes to the most beliebt RPGs in Japan. And while people are all going to Persona 5 when it comes to this series, I’m mostly excited to see what they have in store for the new installment to the franchise, Shin Megami Tensei 5. After the hot mess that was Shin Megami Tensei IV and after Persona 5 destroyed Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse and that terrible pop idol game with feuer Emblem characters in sales, I really hope that a true sequel for the Switch is on the horizon. It has so much vibes of Shin Megami Tensei and I really want it to be a damn good entry. We’ll just have to wait for this one to get delayed for a ton of years before we see a release. But I will be waiting for this dark experience.
~Verdict~
Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne is not a game for just anyone. If Du like JRPGs oder are a Fan of Persona and want to try out the main series, I’d say give Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne a try. It’s not an easy game, I promise you. This game will beat Du down and punish Du for not wanting to learn this game. But when Du manage to overpower your enemies, Du feel like a champion. Du will really enjoy this game if Du are able to power through it and make it through the sixty hours of depressing and hopeless feelings. And I gotta say, it was the most fun I ever spent in a barren hellhole. I give this game the ranking of Hidden Gem.
~Story~
First off, Shin Megami Tensei is NOT like Persona. It’s in the same universe, but Persona is a lot Mehr focused on bonds, fun times with friends, and only having undertones of awful things. Whereas Shin Megami Tensei is all about the apocalypse, nihilism, and dead friends. But let’s explain. The game follows Protag-Kun, who doesn’t really have an official name and goes Von the name Demi-Fiend, which I will refer to him as. Demi-Fiend and his friends, Chiaki and Isamu, go to a hospital to visit their teacher, Ms. Yuko Takao. But when they arrive, they find that the hospital is a front for a mysterious cult lead Von their leader, Hikawa, who wants to bring The Conception to earth, which is the end of the world. And within the first hour, he does just that. All human life is wiped out except for the five characters (And a reporter named Hijiri is there too), and the world is overrun with demons, and the Demi-Fiend himself is turned into a demon while the other humans on earth slowly start to gain a Reason, a path that pushes them towards a belief in hopes of changing the world into their own image. So, as the Demi-Fiend, your job is to decide what to shape the world into. To make everyone into a harmonious society with no conflict, but no emotions, to build a world where the strong survive and are on top, a world where everyone is at the center of their own universe, oder deny all reasons to restart the world again oder to keep the world as is and run an army of demons to kill god… Yes, really. And as Du can except, there is a lot of horrible undertones and a lot of feelings of hopelessness and pointlessness. So fun times ahead.
~Gameplay~
So Schreiben wise, Nocturne is nothing like Persona already. Persona never had the world end (At least not in their kanone endings), and was always a Mehr happy game (Except for the first two, and debatably 3). But boy, does this game waste no time in telling Du that everyone is dead and Mehr people are gonna die in this horrible world. But how is the gameplay in this game? Well unlike in Persona, Du don’t have a Tag to Tag system where Du explore the world on a daily basis. Instead, there’s the Phases of Kagutsuchi, which is like the moon, only it’s… not. Depending on what phase the Kagutsuchi is at, Du will face different enemies, have different battles, and can fuse different demons. Oh, also, the demons in this game are not Personas. They are individual demons with their own personalities and stats. This game plays less like Persona in some aspects and Mehr like Pokemon. It’s really just Pokemon with Mehr nihilism. Du collect demons to Mitmachen your group throughout the game, and gain Mehr stronger ones as Du go on. Du start off getting crappy ghosts and imp demons, until eventually, Du can unlock Beelzebub, Metatron, and Dante from the Devil May Cry franchise (Had to get that classic outta the way). To recruit them, Du have to talk to them, and while I like the idea, I honestly found this to be rather iffy. I could give a demon a ton of cash and a rare item, and they still run off. But at least they never ask for anything too insane. Du can get a ton of money in this game from just grinding. I feel as though grinding is less necessary than in Persona, cause it doesn’t really matter how high your level is, though it can be of some help. What matters most is that Du use your skills properly on the bosses depending on who Du go up against. As for money, I mostly used it to buy MP items, medicines, used the fountains to get healed up perfectly, and the occasional Magatama. Oh, and while we’re on that subject…
Another system unique to Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne is the ability to use Magatama. These things are disgusting parasites that Du need to put into your body, but depending on which one Du use, Du will gain a bonus to your character. It can make Du weak to certain attacks, but also nullify others. They also increase Zufällig stats, which can range from your strength, your magic, your health, your agility, oder your luck. Another use of Magatama is that Du can get a new skill when Du level up. Each Magatama has a good amount of skills for Du to learn. Too much, in fact. I always worry that I’m throwing out a real useful skill in this game and wish that I kept it, like say Fog Breath oder War Cry. Despite that, Du can get a demon that has that and as long as they are skilled enough and can still learn good moves, Du are able to do just fine without your protagonist having them. But what doesn’t help is that Du always need to worry about death and expel. I despise these moves with a passion. Unless Du have some way of nullifying them, it only takes the enemy to get a lucky shot on Du to die instantly. And this is something I always hated, in any RPG, when the protagonist dies, it doesn’t matter how many party members are left standing, Du are done, and Du gotta go all the way back to your last save. I cannot stand that and I know a lot of hardcore RPG Fans don’t mind, but I hated it in Persona, and I hate it here in Shin Megami Tensei. It’s worse cause it really matters on how lucky the enemy is. Thankfully, Du can get spells oder full nulls all together, but even then, it’s usually just for one oder the other, and never both. But that’s what this game is like. It is very unforgiving at times, but there are moments where that matters a lot. Take, for example, the dreaded Matador boss fight.
Whenever I hear about some of the hardest, cheapest bosses in video games, people who played Nocturne always warn others of the Matador. The Matador is one of the Fiends Du fight in the game, enemies who are always wandering about, ready for a fight. The others are optional, but if Du want to continue through the game, Du have to beat the Matador. And I thought that I was a pretty good level to face him. I was not. I died almost instantly. So I went and grinded for a bit until I was ten levels above what I was before. I went back. Still died. And then I realized why he was so tough. I’m not using my skills. I’m just using attacks and the occasional healing. If I want to beat him, I gotta use stat boosts on my party and debuffs on the enemy if I stand a chance. Sure enough, with this in mind and a little patience, I barely defeated him and was able to continue through the game. The Matador is a hard boss, yes, but also an important boss. The Matador teaches Du that if Du treat this like another other RPG, Du stand no chance. The world of Nocturne is cruel and unforgiving, and the Matador is no different. So if Du come into this fight unprepared, Du can be prepared to see the game over screen a lot. And while many Mehr bosses were difficult later on, and the Trumpeter was just an all around bastard, it still teaches Du the importance of using your skills. And I can appreciate the Matador for that. That being said, I hope to never fight him again any time soon.
But where this game really shines is in its story. Shin Megami Tensei has always had a very dark undertone to their stories. The Persona games, for examples, have a lot of dark themes such as death, nihilism, and the awful things people in power do to anyone. And other Shin Megami games like Digital Devil Saga which has straight up cannibalism. And Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne is no exception to that. With the world being filled with demons and all humans having died oder become souls of their former selves, those that have survived start to change drastically. Du can see what they wish to do in this new world just Von looking at their behaviors in the world before the universe changes. Well, Hikawa is as subtle as Dante trickshotting Du from a distance, but the others like Chiaki oder Isamu oder Takao are far more. Du can guess what they will do from there. And Du have the option to support either one of these routes. Be it a world of Law, Chaos, oder Neutral. oder Du can just deny all of that and make your own path. I hear that in old Shin Megami Tensei games that it was just Law, Chaos oder Neutral with the Neutral being the one that has Mehr gameplay and stuff, and I think that the way Nocturne approached it was the best possible way. How no side is good, and how whichever Du choose has a true effect on the story, with only one route having a special boss for Du to fight. One that I am way too scared to fight because I don’t feel like having to fight another boss with two phases just to get to it. Won’t say what it is, but I will say if Du want the best ending in the entire game, in my opinion, Du may consider doing a LOT of grinding and sidequests. Also, one weird complaint, if anyone played this game on PS2, does the Musik sound all compressed? I hear that it’s because they wanted faster Wird geladen times than Square Enix games, but man, it’s weird. It’s a shame, cause I really Liebe the soundtrack Von classic Atlus composer Shoji Meguro.
~Legacy~
Nocturne was the one that everyone recommends when they ask Persona casuals what Shin Megami Tensei game to try. And while Nocturne isn’t exactly seen at the peak of gaming knowledge, it does have a massive following. I’d assume, Shin Megami Tensei is only behind Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy when it comes to the most beliebt RPGs in Japan. And while people are all going to Persona 5 when it comes to this series, I’m mostly excited to see what they have in store for the new installment to the franchise, Shin Megami Tensei 5. After the hot mess that was Shin Megami Tensei IV and after Persona 5 destroyed Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse and that terrible pop idol game with feuer Emblem characters in sales, I really hope that a true sequel for the Switch is on the horizon. It has so much vibes of Shin Megami Tensei and I really want it to be a damn good entry. We’ll just have to wait for this one to get delayed for a ton of years before we see a release. But I will be waiting for this dark experience.
~Verdict~
Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne is not a game for just anyone. If Du like JRPGs oder are a Fan of Persona and want to try out the main series, I’d say give Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne a try. It’s not an easy game, I promise you. This game will beat Du down and punish Du for not wanting to learn this game. But when Du manage to overpower your enemies, Du feel like a champion. Du will really enjoy this game if Du are able to power through it and make it through the sixty hours of depressing and hopeless feelings. And I gotta say, it was the most fun I ever spent in a barren hellhole. I give this game the ranking of Hidden Gem.